Preparing for Surgery
There are some things you and your doctor will do to get ready for surgery. You should eat a healthy diet and continue to exercise, if possible. Your doctor will make sure that you’re healthy enough for surgery and for a smooth recovery. To determine that, you’ll need some tests. You may also talk with your doctor about banking your own blood in case you need blood during surgery.
About 10 days before your surgery, your doctor is likely to tell you to stop taking some of your medications. That may mean not taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). This may include over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin or ibuprofen. And it may include some prescription drugs. These drugs can make you more likely to bleed during surgery. If you take aspirin for a heart problem, don’t stop taking it before talking with your doctor. Make sure you tell your doctor about every drug you take. It is also important to discuss any supplements or naturopathic treatments that you are taking. Some of these can increase complication rates during surgery.
The day before your surgery, you will likely be able to eat only clear liquids. The night before your surgery, you may need to clean out your bowels. You may do this by drinking a large amount of liquid medicine. Or you may give yourself an enema.
On the Day of the Surgery
On the day of your surgery, you will probably need to arrive at the hospital admission area a couple of hours before your surgery is supposed to start. There, you’ll complete the needed paperwork. You will be given a consent form to sign in case you need other procedures during surgery.
Next, you’ll go to a preoperative area. There, you will undress and put on a hospital gown. Before surgery, you will be given a drug called anesthesia. This makes you fall asleep and keeps you from feeling pain during the operation. You’ll get this from an anesthesiologist or a nurse anesthetist. You will have a chance to meet with them ahead of surgery. Then you can ask questions about the anesthesia and how it will affect you. What happens from that point depends on the kind of surgery you are having.
For an abdominal hysterectomy, your doctor makes a long cut (about 6 to 8 inches) in your lower abdomen. This can be either vertical or horizontal. The horizontal cut is sometimes called a bikini cut. A vertical cut extends from your belly button or above it to your pubic bone. The horizontal cut goes along the top of your pubic hairline. Either cut gives the surgeon a good opportunity to view and remove the reproductive organs. However, if ovarian cancer is suspected, a vertical incision allows for better staging and debulking. That’s why it is usually recommended.
For a laparoscopic hysterectomy, your doctor makes a few small cuts in your lower abdomen. The surgeon uses a tiny tool called a laparoscope. It contains a camera connected to a monitor for seeing the inside of your body. The surgeon uses another small instrument to make surgical cuts.
Most ovarian cancers, especially if there is concern that the cancer has spread, are managed with the vertical incision.
